Lucy Sparrow makes things from felt. On 1 August she unveils Cornershop in Bethnal Green. The epic culmination of seven months hard stitching, the month long installation features over 4,000 fabric versions of familiar grocery items, all handmade by the artist, including fish fingers, baked beans, SPAM, tobacco, sweets, beer, toiletries, and fruit and veg.
Made possible by funds gathered via crowdraising site Kickstarter, and with support from Tower Hamnets Council and the Arts Council, the Cornershop project sees the takeover of an abandoned former laundrette in East London. All the goods within are for sale, with prices ranging from £3 for a lighter to £840 for the textile cash till – you can reserve items via an order sheet for the duration of the month long event. Purchases can be shipped out or collected after the shop closes once again on 31 August.
The huge undertaking was born out of Sparrow’s desire to create an immersive phenomenon. One that would benefit diverse community groups by facilitating an active engagement with craft via workshops affiliated with the Cornershop exhibition. The project playfully addresses social issues relating to consumerism, the decline of the British highstreet and urban gentrification. Make your way to Cornershop to gorge on affordable, huggable, political, contemporary textile art.
The Cornershop is open 10am – 7pm every day from 1 – 31 August 2014 at 19 Wellington Row, Bethnal Green, London, E2 7BB. It will then take up residency for one month in Brighton at the No Walls Gallery from 3 October 2014.
